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Saul Stacey Williams (born February 29, 1972) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, musician, poet, writer, and actor. He is known for his blend of poetry and alternative hip hop, and for his lead roles in the 1998 independent film '' Slam'' and the 2013 jukebox musical ''Holler If Ya Hear Me''.


Early life

Saul Stacey Williams was born in Newburgh, New York, on February 29, 1972, the youngest of three children. He attended Newburgh Free Academy, where he wrote his song "Black Stacey". He graduated from Morehouse College with a BA in acting and philosophy, then moved to New York City, where he earned an MFA in acting from
New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, th ...
's Graduate Acting Program at the Tisch School of the Arts. While at New York University, he became part of the New York café poetry scene. He also lived in
Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
as an
exchange student A student exchange program is a program in which students from a secondary school (high school) or university study abroad at one of their institution's partner institutions. A student exchange program may involve international travel, but do ...
from 1988 to 1989.


Career


Poetry

By 1995, Williams had become an open mic poet. In 1996, he won the title of Nuyorican Poets Cafe's Grand Slam Champion. The documentary film '' SlamNation'' follows Williams and the other members of the 1996 Nuyorican Poets Slam team (
Beau Sia Beau Sia (, born 1976) is an American slam poet. Life and career Sia was born in Ohio. He is of Chinese-Filipino descent. Raised in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Sia discovered spoken word poetry on MTV as a teenager. When not participating in his ...
,
muMs da Schemer Craig O'Neil Grant (December 18, 1968 – March 24, 2021), also known as Craig muMs Grant and muMs the Schemer, was an American poet and actor best known for his role as Arnold "Poet" Jackson on the HBO series '' Oz''. Life and career Grant wa ...
, and Jessica Care Moore) as they compete in the 1996 National Poetry Slam held in Portland, Oregon. The following year, Williams landed the lead role in the 1998 feature film '' Slam''. Williams featured as both a writer and actor in the film,Aptowicz, Cristin O'Keefe. (2008). ''Words in Your Face: A Guided Tour Through Twenty Years of the New York City Poetry Slam.'' Soft Skull Press, p. 226. . which would win both the
Sundance Festival The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,66 ...
Grand Jury Prize and the
Cannes Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. The ...
Camera D'Or (Golden Camera).


Music

Around 1998, Williams was also breaking into music. He had performed with such artists as
Nas Nas (born 1973) is the stage name of American rapper Nasir Jones. Nas, NaS, or NAS may also refer to: Aviation * Nasair, a low-cost airline carrier and subsidiary based in Eritrea * National Air Services, an airline in Saudi Arabia ** Nas Air ...
, The Fugees, Christian Alvarez, Blackalicious, Erykah Badu,
KRS-One Lawrence "Kris" Parker (born August 20, 1965), better known by his stage names KRS-One (; an abbreviation of "Knowledge Reigns Supreme Over Nearly Everyone") and Teacha, is an American rapper from New York City. He rose to prominence as part of ...
, Zack De La Rocha, De La Soul, Buckethead, and
DJ Krust Kirk Thompson (born 26 July 1968), better known by his stage name Krust, is an English drum and bass producer, DJ and co-owner of the Full Cycle record label. Beyond his roles in the music industry, Thompson is also responsible for two business ...
, as well as poets
Allen Ginsberg Irwin Allen Ginsberg (; June 3, 1926 – April 5, 1997) was an American poet and writer. As a student at Columbia University in the 1940s, he began friendships with William S. Burroughs and Jack Kerouac, forming the core of the Beat Gener ...
and Sonia Sanchez. After releasing a string of EPs, he released the LP '' Amethyst Rock Star'' with producer Rick Rubin in 2001. In September 2004, he released his self-titled album to much acclaim. He played several shows supporting
Nine Inch Nails Nine Inch Nails, commonly abbreviated as NIN and stylized as NIИ, is an American industrial rock band formed in Cleveland in 1988. Singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer Trent Reznor was the only permanent member of the band ...
on their European tour in summer 2005, and has also supported The Mars Volta. Williams was invited to the Lollapalooza music festival around that time, and the Chicago stage allowed Williams to attract a wider audience. He appeared on the Nine Inch Nails album '' Year Zero'', and supported the group on their 2006 tour of North America. On the tour, Williams announced that Trent Reznor would co-produce his next album. This collaboration resulted in 2007's ''
The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust! ''The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust!'' is the third solo studio album by Saul Williams. It was released in 2007. It peaked at number 41 on the ''Billboard'' Heatseekers Albums chart, as well as number 89 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Al ...
''. The album was available only from its website until a physical CD was issued, featuring new tracks and extended album artwork. The first 100,000 customers on the website had the option to download a free lower-quality audio version of the album. The other option was for users to pay $5 to support the artist directly and be given the choice of downloading the higher-quality MP3 version or the lossless
FLAC FLAC (; Free Lossless Audio Codec) is an audio coding format for lossless compression of digital audio, developed by the Xiph.Org Foundation, and is also the name of the free software project producing the FLAC tools, the reference softwa ...
version. The material was produced by Trent Reznor and mixed by Alan Moulder. It was Reznor who said, after his own recent dealings with record labels, that they should release it independently and directly to the audience. In early 2008, a Nike Sparq Training commercial featured Williams' song "List of Demands (Reparations)". In a November 2008 interview with
Wired.com ''Wired'' (stylized as ''WIRED'') is a monthly American magazine, published in print and online editions, that focuses on how emerging technologies affect culture, the economy, and politics. Owned by Condé Nast, it is headquartered in San Fra ...
, Williams talked about his forthcoming projects: "There's one album that I'm waist-deep into. I'm aiming to finish it up next month. Trent wants to work on a sequel for ''Niggy'' that I think would be cool, and I also have an album and new songs demoed at home that I'm ready to go into the studio and lay down. It’s a complete reflection of how I feel in this country; it's a very transformative time." Williams' fourth album, '' Volcanic Sunlight'', was released on November 11, 2011. Williams showcased the album at London's
Hoxton Hoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, England. As a part of Shoreditch, it is often considered to be part of the East End – the historic core of wider East London. It was historically in the county of Middlesex until 1889. It l ...
Bar Kitchen on January 26, 2011. Livemusic interviewed Williams on the evening and made a subsequent film, produced by artist Alex Templeton-Ward. When Williams was asked what the point of poetry was, he said: "I'm making this up, I have no idea but here we go. I think that it would be to express, to share, to relieve, to explore. For me, poetry offers some what of a cathartic experience. I am able to move through emotions and emotional experience particularly, you know, break-ups, difficulties in all the things that I may face, whether that is with an industry or a loved one or whomever, there needs to be an infiltration process, like you have a window open over there. That is the purpose of poetry: it is the window that opens, that allows some air in, some other insight, some other possibility so we can explore all that we feel, all that we think but with the space to see more than what we know, because there is so much more than we know. If I didn't open myself to the possibilities of the unknown, then I would be lost." Williams' fifth album, '' MartyrLoserKing'', was released on January 29, 2016. The first single released from the album was "Burundi", a collaboration with Emily Kokal of Warpaint. In March 2018, The Kills released their cover of Williams' "List of Demands (Reparations)" and Williams opened for The Kills' sold-out performance at the Regent Theater in Los Angeles on August 13, 2018.


Writing

As a writer, Williams has been published in ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', ''
Esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentlema ...
'', '' Bomb Magazine'', and ''African Voices'', as well as releasing four collections of poetry. As a poet and musician, Williams has toured and lectured across the world, appearing at many universities and colleges. In his interview in the book ''Words in Your Face: A Guided Tour Through Twenty Years of the New York City Poetry Slam'', Williams explained why he creates within so many genres: "It's not that I balance those arts out, all the different arts balance me out. So, that there is a certain type of emotion that is more easily accessible through music than poetry... some things are meant to be written, some are meant to be sung, some things are meant to be hummed, some things are made to be yelled, and so that's just how life works."Aptowicz (2008), ''Words in Your Face'', p. 229.82-9. In January 2009, he released ''NGH WHT The Dead Emcee Scrolls with The Arditti Quartet'', a reading of his 2006 poetry book of the same name. This collaboration with Thomas Kessler (who also set Williams' spoken-word track ",said the shotgun to the head" to music) was released with two payment options: listeners could download chapters 18 to 22 of the 27-minute composition in MP3 format for free, or could download the entire 33-chapter composition in lossless
AIFF Audio Interchange File Format (AIFF) is an audio file format standard used for storing sound data for personal computers and other electronic audio devices. The format was developed by Apple Inc. in 1988 based on Electronic Arts' Interchange ...
format for $6, along with the isolated vocal and quartet multitracks. The entire paid download totalled in size at 563 megabytes. Williams contributed to two tracks on the 2011 album ''Baba Love'' by Arthur H.


Acting

Williams starred in '' Slam'' (1998) and '' Today'' (2012). On stage, he was chosen for the lead role in ''
Holler If Ya Hear Me "Holler If Ya Hear Me" is a song by American rapper 2Pac from his second solo studio album, '' Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z.'' (1993). It was released on February 4, 1993 as the album's lead single. The track, which samples "Do It Any Way You Wanna" ...
'', a Broadway musical featuring music by
Tupac Shakur Tupac Amaru Shakur ( ; born Lesane Parish Crooks, June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known as 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper. He is widely considered one of the most influential rappers of all time. Shakur is among the b ...
. Though it features Shakur's music, the musical is not about his life. It is an original script written by Todd Kreidler. ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...
'' described the production as "the first hip-hop jukebox musical in Broadway history". The show opened on June 19, 2014. Williams' role in the musical landed him an interview on ''
The Colbert Report ''The Colbert Report'' ( ) is an American late-night talk and news satire television program hosted by Stephen Colbert that aired four days a week on Comedy Central from October 17, 2005, to December 18, 2014, for 1,447 episodes. The show fo ...
'', where he spoke about his career and performed a poem entitled "Amethyst Rocks". He received a
Canadian Screen Award The Canadian Screen Awards (french: link=no, Les prix Écrans canadiens) are awards given for artistic and technical merit in the film industry recognizing excellence in Canadian film, English-language television, and digital media ( web series ...
nomination for
Best Actor Best Actor is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organizations, festivals, and people's awards to leading actors in a film, television series, television film or play. The term most often refers to the ...
at the
9th Canadian Screen Awards The 9th annual Canadian Screen Awards were held in the week of May 17 to 20, 2021, to honour achievements in Canadian film, television, and digital media production in 2020.Barry Hertz, "How one Canadian arts institution is rebuilding amid the p ...
in 2021, for his performance in the film '' Akilla's Escape''.


Directing

In 2021, Neptune Frost, which Williams wrote and co-directed with
Anisia Uzeyman Anisia Uzeyman (born Anisziya Uwizeyimana February 1975 at Gihindamuyaga in Mbazi, Rwanda) is a Rwandan actress and playwright. She is most noted as codirector with Saul Williams of the 2021 film '' Neptune Frost''.Wendy Ide"‘Neptune Frost’: ...
, premiered in Cannes at
Directors' Fortnight The Directors' Fortnight (french: Quinzaine des Réalisateurs) is an independent selection of the Cannes Film Festival. It was started in 1969 by the French Directors Guild after the events of May 1968 resulted in cancellation of the Cannes festi ...
. The film was supported by a successful
Kickstarter Kickstarter is an American public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life". As of July 2021, ...
campaign in 2018.


Personal life

Williams is a
vegan Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal product—particularly in diet—and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. An individual who follows the diet or philosophy is known as a vegan. ...
. He is a vocal critic of the
War on Terrorism The war on terror, officially the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT), is an ongoing international counterterrorism military campaign initiated by the United States following the September 11 attacks. The main targets of the campaign are militant ...
and the wars in
Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
and
Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is borde ...
. Among his better-known works are the anti-war anthems "Not in My Name" and "Act III Scene 2 (Shakespeare)". In 2011, he added his name to Occupy Musicians, supporting the worldwide
Occupy movement The Occupy movement was an international populist socio-political movement that expressed opposition to social and economic inequality and to the perceived lack of "real democracy" around the world. It aimed primarily to advance social and econo ...
against income inequality. He identifies as
queer ''Queer'' is an umbrella term for people who are not heterosexual or cisgender. Originally meaning or , ''queer'' came to be used pejoratively against those with same-sex desires or relationships in the late 19th century. Beginning in the l ...
. Williams and Marcia Jones, a visual artist and art professor, began their relationship in 1995 as collaborative artists on the
Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...
performance art and spoken word poetry circuit. Their daughter, Saturn, was born in 1996. A collection of poems by Williams entitled ''S/HE'' is a series of reflections on the demise of his relationship with Jones. Jones created the cover artwork for ''The Seventh Octave'', images throughout ''S/HE'' in response to Williams, and set-designed his 2001 album '' Amethyst Rock Star''. Saturn performed with her father on his 2008 concert tour. Williams also has a son named Xuly with renowned choreographer
Fatima Robinson Fatima Robinson (born August 29, 1971) is an American dancer, music video director and choreographer. Career Robinson has choreographed dance routines (for live performances and music videos) for several musical and pop artists, notably for th ...
. On February 29, 2008 (his 36th birthday), Williams married actress Persia White after a five-year relationship. They met when he made a guest appearance on the series '' Girlfriends''. On January 17, 2009, White announced via her Myspace blog that she and Williams were no longer together. He is now married to actress
Anisia Uzeyman Anisia Uzeyman (born Anisziya Uwizeyimana February 1975 at Gihindamuyaga in Mbazi, Rwanda) is a Rwandan actress and playwright. She is most noted as codirector with Saul Williams of the 2021 film '' Neptune Frost''.Wendy Ide"‘Neptune Frost’: ...
. He lived in
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...
for four years but now resides in
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...
.


Discography


Studio albums

*'' Amethyst Rock Star'' (2001) *''
Saul Williams Saul Stacey Williams (born February 29, 1972) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, musician, poet, writer, and actor. He is known for his blend of poetry and alternative hip hop, and for his lead roles in the 1998 independent film '' Slam ...
'' (2004) *''
The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust! ''The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust!'' is the third solo studio album by Saul Williams. It was released in 2007. It peaked at number 41 on the ''Billboard'' Heatseekers Albums chart, as well as number 89 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Al ...
'' (2007) *''NGH WHT'' (2009) *'' Volcanic Sunlight'' (2011) *'' MartyrLoserKing'' (2016) *'' Encrypted & Vulnerable'' (2019) *'' Unanimous Goldmine (The Original Soundtrack of "Neptune Frost")'' (2022)


Compilation albums

*''Real Niggery Volume One'' (2005) *''These Mthrfckrs: MartyrLoserKing - Remixes, B-Sides, & Demos'' (2016)


EPs

*'' Not in My Name'' (2003)


Singles

*"Elohim (1972)" (1998) *"Penny for a Thought" b/w "Purple Pigeons" (2000) *"List of Demands (Reparations)" (2004) *"Black Stacey" (2005) *"The Flaw You Worship" (2018)


Guest appearances


Bibliography

*''The Seventh Octave'', 1998, Moore Black Press, *''She'', 1999, MTV/Pocketbooks, *''Said the Shotgun to the Head'', 2003, MTV/Pocketbooks, *''The Dead Emcee Scrolls'', 2006, MTV/Pocketbooks, *''Chorus'', 2012, *''US (a.)'', 2015, Gallery Books/MTV Books,


Filmography


Film

*'' Slam'' (1998) *'' SlamNation'' (1998) *''
Downtown 81 ''Downtown 81'' is a 2000 American film that was shot in 1980-1981. The film was directed by Edo Bertoglio and written and produced by Glenn O'Brien and Patrick Montgomery, with post-production in 1999-2000 by Glenn O'Brien and Maripol. It is a r ...
'' (voice) (1981/2000) *''Underground Voices'' (1996) *''I'll Make Me a World'' (1999) *''King of the Korner'' (2000) *'' K-PAX'' (2001) *'' The N-Word'' (2004) *''
Lackawanna Blues ''Lackawanna Blues'' is an American play written by Ruben Santiago-Hudson that premiered in 2001. It was later adapted as a television movie that aired in 2005. The play dramatizes the character of the author's primary caregiver when he was growi ...
'' (2005) *'' Today'' (2012) *'' Akilla's Escape'' (2020) *'' Neptune Frost'' (2021) *''
Pussy Island ''Pussy Island'' is an upcoming American thriller film directed by Zoë Kravitz, in her directorial debut, from a screenplay she co-wrote with E.T. Feigenbaum. Premise A cocktail waitress becomes infatuated with a tech mogul, and travels with hi ...
'' (TBA)


Television

* '' Girlfriends'' (2003) *''
The Colbert Report ''The Colbert Report'' ( ) is an American late-night talk and news satire television program hosted by Stephen Colbert that aired four days a week on Comedy Central from October 17, 2005, to December 18, 2014, for 1,447 episodes. The show fo ...
'' (2014)


References


External links

* – official site * *
Saul Williams: Volcanic SunlightInterview with Saul Williams
(via Talk Rock To Me) May 4, 2012 {{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Saul 1972 births Living people African-American male actors African-American musicians African-American poets Alternative hip hop musicians American anti–Iraq War activists American male film actors American industrial musicians American male poets American expatriates in France American rappers American male television actors American spoken word artists Anti-corporate activists Big Dada artists Copyright activists East Coast hip hop musicians LGBT African Americans American LGBT musicians LGBT people from New York (state) LGBT rappers LGBT male actors Morehouse College alumni Male actors from New York (state) Singers from New York (state) Ninja Tune artists People from Newburgh, New York Queer actors Queer artists Queer men Slam poets Tisch School of the Arts alumni Urban fiction Wichita Recordings artists 21st-century American rappers African-American male singers Newburgh Free Academy alumni